102. Problem

102. Problem

“Kuaaang!”

“Seol-ah, are you awake?”

A strong and powerful awakening!

With a terrifying and fearsome cry befitting the world’s best wolf, I sat bolt upright in my sister’s arms. Although I sat up, I was still in my sister’s embrace; that’s the spirit of it.

I turned my head and looked around. Since my sister was holding me, I could see the world from a much higher vantage point than usual.

Someday I’ll be this tall too. So tall that Seol-gu won’t even be able to look up at me. When that day comes, I’ll have to hold Seol-gu like this. I can’t wait to become an adult.

“Sister, where is this?”

Separately from that, the surrounding scenery was quite different from what I remembered.

Under a sky dark enough to be devoid of stars, we were on a city street filled with dazzling streetlights and electric lights.

It was so different from the train interior I remembered just moments ago that I flinched, with a dumbfounded expression.

My sister smiled and replied.

“It’s the capital of the Magi Republic. We just arrived.”

“Huk…!”

The capital of the Magi Republic!

Come to think of it, the air here had changed a lot from where we lived. It was warmer, and at the same time, a bit acrid. I could tell instantly that we had come a long way.

My eyes sparkled at the drastically changed scenery. Then, I tilted my head to examine my surroundings more closely.

“Wow…!”

The light from the electric lamps shone so brightly that I had to squint. Not only the streetlights but also the light spilling from the building windows illuminated the entire area.

To such an extent that a halo of light formed above the city, reflecting back up into the sky. It felt as if the sun was below and the ground was above.

At first glance, one might mistake the entire city for glowing.

While I thought the light was a bit excessive, it was undeniably a landscape that warranted exclamations of admiration. As I was carried in my sister’s arms, I carefully observed other things.

“Ooh….”

Under the flashing streetlights, many people were walking on the well-paved gray brick path. Due to the crowded street, I saw people bumping shoulders, and naturally, people getting into arguments.

There was also a wide road in the center of the main street, which people used normally, but occasionally, something resembling a motorcycle would pass by with a loud noise. Then, people would part to the left and right, creating space for the vehicle to pass.

It looked quite dangerous, but it seemed very familiar to these people. Even as a motorcycle zipped past right next to them, no one seemed particularly bothered.

By the way, I heard the train wouldn’t arrive until dawn, so is the street this crowded with people even at dawn? I expected there to be many people, but I didn’t expect this many. It truly befits the name of a nation’s capital.

This is about the same level of amazingness as my fifteen strands of super-tail fur.

I admit it, Magi Republic, you are amazing. Honestly, it’s cool.

As I perked up my ears and uttered exclamations, my sister suddenly said, pulling up the corners of her mouth.

“Seol-ah, that thing that just went ‘vroom vroom’ is called a two-wheeled vehicle, like a one-person train people use to travel long distances, but it makes a lot of noise, so you don’t need to be scared…”

“I already know!”

“Oh, oh, you do?”

Of course, I know. I’m a reincarnator, so I’m very familiar with such vehicles. I’m not like a child seeing a car for the first time, crying “Uwaaang, what’s that, it’s scary?”

Even if I weren’t a reincarnator, given my exceptionally superior and immense intelligence, I would have already known what it was by now.

Anyway, I have too many talents, that’s the problem. What if I end up becoming an emperor wolf that rules the world…!

“Yes, I see… Our Seol-ah already knows such things, how impressive…”

“Hee hee.”

For some reason, my sister looked quite dejected and downcast at my firm answer that I knew what a motorcycle was.

I couldn’t understand why. Perhaps she wanted to explain what it was to me….

Although I felt good about being praised, my sister’s dejected expression made my heart feel uneasy again. After pondering, I pointed at the brightly shining streetlight and asked.

“Uh, Sister, what is that? It’s so bright!”

“Ah, that’s a streetlight… Come to think of it, Seol-ah, you’ve never seen one at night! So, what it is, is that it emits light using magic stones to illuminate the surroundings even at night….”

Haha.

As I asked about something I didn’t know like an innocent child, my sister’s eyes sparkled as if she had just been depressed, and she began to explain the streetlight to me.

Does she really enjoy teaching me things that much? Or perhaps she wants to see me surprised or amazed.

My sister’s mood was so good that her tail, attached to her backside, was wagging at light speed. Her white wolf tail, flapping back and forth, kept hitting Dad, who was following behind her, causing Dad to wear a grumpy expression.

Dad’s clothes were slowly becoming covered in white fur.

Still, I winked at him, signaling him to bear with it this time, and Dad, letting out a deep sigh, endured my sister’s fuss.

My sister’s explanation about the streetlight continued for a full 15 minutes. I don’t know what it was about the streetlight that she explained for so long.

However, I am a wolf who already knows what a streetlight is. Even if it’s a fantasy world with peculiar power sources, a streetlight is just a streetlight. Unless a streetlight moves on two legs like a transforming robot, no matter how hard my sister explained, I just played along and let it go in one ear.

Finally, my sister’s explanation ended.

“… That’s what it is! What do you think? Isn’t it amazing, Seol-ah?”

“Huh? Uh! Uh, yes. It’s totally amazing!”

As if she had fulfilled her duty as an older sister, my sister wore a very satisfied expression, stroked my head, and started walking forward again.

… Sorry, Sister. To be honest, I wasn’t listening at all from the middle because I was looking around.

But if my sister is happy, that’s all that matters. So, I’ll keep this matter quietly buried in my heart. It’s what they call a white lie.

I turned my head and looked at Dad behind my sister. Dad was carrying my bag for me.

“Dad, is Seol-gu doing okay?”

“Yes.”

Dad casually opened the bag and showed me Seol-gu inside.

Seol-gu’s appearance, after more than ten hours….

“Kkiiing.”

“Huk, Seol-gu, what’s wrong?”

“Kkaaeeng….”

It was exactly like a melted marshmallow. Or, like a melted snowball. Either way, it was an accurate description of Seol-gu’s condition right now.

Not good, unlike Dad’s answer. Dad also seemed quite taken aback, his eyes widening as he looked at Seol-gu.

Seol-gu, limp and with even his big tail completely drooping, weakly cried “Kkang-kkang” and appealed to me. As I tried to guess the meaning of those “Kkang-kkang”s, I soon realized what Seol-gu was trying to say.

“It’s hot?”

“Kkiing….”

“What should I do… I didn’t think of that!”

Seol-gu is an Arctic fox. A fox that lives in the very cold and harsh Arctic. To withstand the fierce cold of the polar regions, Arctic foxes grow long, fluffy, and dense fur, and their tails become large and bushy, much like mine.

When an Arctic fox, adapted to cold regions, suddenly leaves the polar regions and moves to the warm southern regions, there’s no need to imagine what would happen.

“Kkaaeeng….”

This is exactly like wearing a long padded coat and going on vacation to Hawaii.

Although I also have a bushy tail like Seol-gu, in my case, my sister had already taken off my outer coat and scarf earlier, so I didn’t feel that hot.

But Seol-gu, unlike me, has nothing he can take off, so there was nothing I could do. It’s not like I can pull out all his fur because he’s hot.

Even if someone were to do that, I would stop them with all my might. Because Seol-gu’s fluffiness is important.

In any case, it was true that Seol-gu was suffering from the heat. I held the melting marshmallow in my arms and thought deeply, then came up with a brilliant and witty idea.

“Let’s use magic!”

It was to use my magic stone. Through this mysterious fox bead stone, which foxes also favor, creating a magic air conditioner that follows Seol-gu around wouldn’t be difficult at all.

As expected, I’m a genius. To cherish my pet and friend fox like this, and to come up with such a great solution!

“Okay, stone….”

I cleared my throat, straightened my posture, raised the stone high into the air, and cast a spell.

… I was about to.

“Huh?”

“Kkang….”

“Why isn’t it working?”

However, the stone did not respond to my request.

To be more precise, it did respond, but the effect was very poor. A brief gust of cold wind blew around Seol-gu and then ended.

Even though I barked diligently at the stone, wondering if I had barked less on the train, the stone remained silent and unresponsive.

I can’t figure out why.

It had always activated magic on its own until now, so why is it malfunctioning at a time like this?

“Why…?”

I pondered for a moment, then spoke to the stone. This was because I remembered what Grandma told me at Lucy’s house, that only foxes can use the stone.

Although my wolf pride kept interfering… protecting Seol-gu is still important, right?

“I am actually a fox, Kkang.”

Sparkle!

Then, the stone reacted with a slight glow.

But that was all. The stone still couldn’t cool Seol-gu.

After struggling with the stone, shaking it and hitting it a few times, I finally had to admit a shocking truth.

“Sister!! My magic isn’t working!”

“What?”

That my magic isn’t working!